Name
Nikolas H. Freling ("Niko" to friends)
Age
18, fairly young even in his class
Gender
Male/masculine
Nationality
Austrian (in the US for college.)
Ethnicity
Caucasian - Austrian (father) x French (mother)
Sexuality
Homoromantic / Androsexual
Love Language
Words of affirmation and/or physical touch (recieving), acts of service (giving)
Grade
Freshman
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Appearance
Nikolas stands at a humble 5'7 and weighing in at an average ~130 pounds. To the outside observer he is average-looking, even cute, if not traditionally handsome as far as masculine features go. He has a heart-shaped face and rounded, soft features, a triangular body shape, with slightly narrow shoulders and wider hips, which would be unremarkable to most. But Niko is highly image-conscious and, even now, he low-key hates how he looks. He's never been diagnosed with anything, but the baseline traits of body dysmorphia are there (although he has never dropped to a dangerously low weight requiring intervention, so no one really knows about it but him.) He hates wearing tight clothes and things like swimming - anything that requires showing his body to the public. Ach. He is average, and the flaws he picks out are minor and almost all genetics. But in his mind average isn't enough.
He has dark coffee-colored hair, so dark brown it's almost black. It is curly in texture, thick and very soft. It is styled shorter on the sides/back and longer on top, and probably his favorite feature. His eyes are a dark hazel color, mixed brown, grey and green. His resting expression is difficult to read, intent and cool, somewhat intimidating if you're trying to gauge what he thinks of you.
Despite his (percieved) flaws, or perhaps because of them, he has a keen sense of fashion and what looks good/doesn't look good on him. He works hard to maintain an air of elegance and put-together confidence to feel worthy of respect, and hates being seen unkempt or dirty. This is, however, far more out of social anxiety than it is out of pride or vanity.
Voice
Niko's voice is fairly soft, most of the time and medium-pitch. He has a notable Austrian/German accent, despite speaking English fluently, just for lack of practice in a fully English-speaking environment. He is basically fluent in English, aside from some expressions and less general vocabulary he may have not heard before.
Personality
4w5 who has been conditioned to be a 4w3
Niko comes across as very put together, well-spoken, polite and intelligent to all he meets. Despite being introverted he takes great care to look and act confident and in control, appearing far from helpless or clueless. This can make him appear unapproachable and even snobby or pretentious to some strangers, although he never means to make them uncomfortable. Hiding flaws and struggles is almost second nature to him, because of the way he was raised, resulting in him seeming almost like he's above others' struggles and making it hard for him to be empathetic or candid. He was taught from a very early age to cultivate the appearance of success in the eyes of his peers, which has prevented him from forming proper relationships and becoming close with people in the past. He prefers solitude a lot of the time only because there is no pressure to project an image to anyone. Needless to say, his early life was a fairly lonely one.
If you get to know him you'll learn that Niko was born into a fairly wealthy, privilaged life, and can be rather naiive and sheltered. However he is endlessly curious about the world around him, open-minded and quick to observe things and absorb new information. He has learned to live a very independent life, and can function very well on his own. He he has to force himself not to be too clingy towards people he likes, either friends or crushes - which may actually result in him ghosting them for fear of acting too needy. A lot of this anxiety occurs and builds in his mind, and a person may not even know he has it until he's jumped ship. Despite a cool, put-together and detatched front this young man is almost too easy to befriend, if you treat him with general kindness and don't actively make him feel bad about himself. He has matured and become somewhat more aware of these issues, but communicating his feelings and fears is a major struggle of his. It's so much easier to stick to himself...
Niko has never had a real, solid romantic relationship. Partly because he was quite isolated as a child, between boarding schools and not interacting much with others his age. Partly because of the whole complicated "being gay" thing, which he still hasn't totally come to terms with. He's been approached before for sure, and has had plenty of chances to be in relationships, but he has rejected almost everyone who has tried to go out with him. He just doesn't believe people when they say they're interested in him, or doesn't feel that attachment to them (mainly with girls.)
Niko is much more comfortable in groups, especially of people he knows well, able to talk and joke easily and be very engaging in conversation. And he can be funny as well, with a dry, clever sense of humor. However he comes across as rather awkward one-on-one, stiff, uncomfortable and guarded in more close or personal situations. He'd like to open up and feel accepted by people, just a few very close friends or maybe even a potential relationship, but something in him feels this is not possible. So he will become defensive, cold and detached if questioned too intimately. His core belief is that he has to work extremely hard to be worthy of acceptance and respect, and most days it just doesn't feel worth it.
If you can get through to him, past the angst and crises of self worth, you'll find he is an intelligent, soft-hearted, highly creative and empathetic young man who will repay your acceptance and affection with undying loyalty and acceptance in return. He can be very thoughtful and sweet even just to friends, and is willing to give the shirt off his back to help them.
He has an air of innocence, curiosity and softness to him when he is relaxed and secure, an openness and empathy towards the world that is almost magnetic to those who are struggling or need support. Niko at his best has a sense of poise, confidence and pride visible to all around him. He also has an eye for beauty and is able to both see the beauty in everything, and to bring it out. He has a strong sense of aesthetics which can be seen in most aspects of his life. He can be very affectionate and selfless, even cuddly if he really likes and trusts you.
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Extra Curriculars
Choir and Theater (both of which he has been in for most of his life) and Horseback riding (a new addition.)
He doesn't have his own horse, and quickly came to realize he's quite afraid of them. But he decided to do something outside of his comfort zone for his first year of college.
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Affiliations
None yet... He's never met anyone on campus, and planned to mostly stick to himself because that's what he knows.
Roommates
Zavior and Jack
Crush
Open
Significant Other
N/A
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Other
He from Austria, came to the US on a scholarship to study the humanities/art here. He's fluent in German and French from his parents, and English, from lots of exposure and from school.